Outdoor Lighting Techniques for Fall
Outdoor lighting goes a long way in highlighting the beauty of your home’s landscaping. While you may be able to see it all just fine during the day, a little lighting here and there at night can create truly breathtaking beauty. If you enjoy cool fall evenings outdoors around a fire pit or just taking in the fresh air, update your outdoor lighting to match. Here are some useful tips you can use to make sure this fall’s outdoor lighting plan is the most spectacular one yet.
Create Warmth with Uplights and Downlights
Combining uplights and downlights around a seating area such a patio or gazebo is the best way to increase safety and enjoyment during fall evenings. You can create a warm glow just by arranging the lights to shine upward into trees or the ceiling of a structure. Meanwhile, downlighting should be strategically placed to increase safety when walking around in the dark. Light paths and the edges of the seating area to ensure everyone can see without feeling spotlighted as they sit out and take in the night air.
Remove Leaves or Small Branches
Maintenance for plants around your lights is essential this time of year. While you need to check for new growth in every season that could block the outdoor lights, falling leaves or branches are a unique hazard for this time of year. The routine removal of any accumulated leaves will prevent lights from being dimmed or blocked entirely. If you look out one evening and feel like your yard is dimmer or less eye-catching than it used to be, it’s time to go around and give the light system a fall clean up. You may also need to remove dust, pollen, or mildew growth on the lenses of some lights as well for optimal brightness. Keeping a handy chart or map of where all outdoor lighting is installed makes light maintenance go much quicker.
Adjust Uplights On Deciduous Trees
If you have uplights installed to point at deciduous trees, you may want to adjust them for the fall and winter seasons. Consider waiting until the leaves finish falling to admire their color at the peak of leaf season. When the branches are bare, lower the angle of the light to highlight the intricacy of the trunk rather than the bare branches. While this isn’t a concern with most evergreen trees, you still may choose to adjust the angle of the uplighting to highlight decorations you add closer to the trunk or base of the tree. Make sure to readjust as spring comes around and you want to bounce light off the new greenery that emerges.
If You Haven’t Already, Make the Switch to LEDs
LED lighting is shown to significantly increase your energy efficiency and lower your electric bill. This switch alone can make outdoor lighting much easier to afford on a month-to-month basis. They are also safer to use in an environment full of dry leaves and twigs as they do not produce heat like other types of outdoor lighting do. Led lights help reduce the risk of fire hazards, especially in the fall.
Light Your Fire Features
Fire pits and outdoor fireplaces are the perfect places to enjoy a nice relaxing evening after a long day. While fire pits and outdoor fireplaces add their own light when lit, you still need outdoor lighting to improve ambiance and increase safety. You need a soft, indirect approach to lighting around the fire pit or similar features so the artificial lighting doesn’t compete with the glow of the flames. Some soft lighting ideas that might help include:
-Lantern and string lights strung around the edges of the fire pit’s seating are
-Gazebo lighting if your fire pit/fireplace is underneath a gazebo
-Undercap lights, which can be installed on the edges of the fire pit itself or under benches to help light the ground where you need to see obstacles.
The right amount of lighting around a fire feature will make it easier to move around safely, and deal with any emergencies that could pop up without taking away from the ambiance of the fire.
Other Considerations for Fall
Make sure your outdoor lighting timers are adjusted to compensate for how much earlier the darkness sets in during the fall and winter. Use patio lighting to help highlight the pretty colors even late at night. Work your holiday decorations into your outdoor lighting plans so they work together harmoniously instead of clashing, especially if you plan to have any fall gatherings or parties in the evening.
